The Federal Government managed to pass a spending package, extending government funding for several more months. The Biden Administration has called this a victory, but Republicans still managed to get spending they wanted.
Democrats generally benefit from positive media coverage during potential shutdowns. The House Freedom Caucus voiced its disapproval of the measure, but President Trump has clearly made his position known on fiscal issues, deprioritizing them compared to winning the election. The NY Times says:
President Biden signed a $1.2 trillion spending package on Saturday, putting an end to the prospect of a government shutdown after the legislation passed a rushed series of congressional votes with bipartisan support and landed on his desk just after 2 a.m.
The government faced a potential shutdown if the measure was not signed into law before midnight on Friday. But as the Senate vote ticked past that hour, the White House released a statement saying that federal officials at the Office of Management and Budget had “ceased shutdown preparations” in anticipation of imminent Senate passage and signing by Mr. Biden.
Spending for programs other than national defense are slightly up, though mostly to keep with inflation. Republicans managed to extract additional detainment space for illegal aliens, though actual arrests remain the purview of the Biden Administration. The Associated Press says:
Nondefense spending will be relatively flat compared with the prior year, though some agencies, such as the Environmental Protection Agency, are taking a hit, and many agencies will not see their budgets keep up with inflation.
When combining the two packages, discretionary spending for the budget year will come to about $1.66 trillion. That does not include programs such as Social Security and Medicare, and financing the country’s rising debt.
Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid remain the biggest parts of the budget, and have not been tampered with. Both political parties are breathing a sigh of relief, as their fortunes could collapse if they attempted to touch the spending. America’s long term fiscal health, however, needs a clear review as the current spending and revenue is unsustainable long term.
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